Stanley notes a change in tone among BA management, where the CEO recently discussed “significant value” associated with the dividend and that the board would take a “hard look” at its policy; the firm also believes a higher dividend would better demonstrate confidence in the cash flow story and help address investor concerns over growth, sustainability and accounting.

If the board makes a 30%-50% dividend hike, Stanley thinks BA shares could trade up to the $175-$200 range.

Boeing currently has a 2.8% dividend yield, and a 30% increase would bring the yield to 3.68%, based on a share price of $155.22.

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump told NBC that companies should welcome his actions because they will prosper under his administration, one day after criticizing one of Boeing's (NYSE:BA) high-profile projects.

Trump said he spoke with CEO Dennis Muilenburg on Tuesday about the cost of its work regarding new presidential planes, and "we're going to work it out. That's what I'm here for. I'm going to negotiate prices."

On the markets: "I don't know... how people are unnerved. It's just the opposite. Frankly, I think we're going to go up."

Boeing (NYSE:BA) shares closed slightly in the green, erasing the earlier damage done by Pres.-elect Trump’s threat to cancel the contract to build new Air Force One planes (I, II), as comments by the company and others questioned Trump's numbers.

Boeing does not have an actual order to build the plane: It says it has a $170M contract to begin development work to add communications and anti-missile equipment and mid-air refueling capabilities on replacement planes that likely will not go into service until 2023.

The Defense Department is budgeting $3.2B for R&D, construction and acquisition of new 747-8 planes through 2021, says Bloomberg analyst Kevin Brancato; after the initial expenses, the new jets would cost taxpayers ~$225M each, largely to tailor the planes specifically for the needs of the president.

Speculation says Trump’s ire may have been caused by comments from Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg that could be interpreted as veiled criticism of his trade policies; the CEO is concerned that the Pres.-elect is eager for a confrontation with China.

Bloomberg's Paula Dwyer worries that if China pushes back on Trump's recent provocations, Boeing could well lose a huge chunk of business, along with many U.S. jobs, as the company has delivered nearly 1,000 aircraft worth $60B to China since 2000.

Boeing (NYSE:BA) agrees to acquire Liquid Robotics, a market leader in autonomous maritime systems and developer of the Wave Glider ocean surface robot, in a bid to expand its capabilities in unmanned underwater vehicles.

Wave Glider is the first wave and solar-powered autonomous ocean robot, and is used for ocean data collection and communications; in 2014, Boeing and Liquid Robotics collaborated on a version of the Wave Glider to enhance its capabilities.

Financial terms are not provided for the deal, the second acquisition of an unmanned undersea vehicle maker this year by a major defense firm after rival General Dynamics bought submarine robot maker Bluefin Robotics in February.

Boeing (BA-0.7%) has no immediate comment on Donald Trump's criticism of the Air Force One program, which he said would cost more than $4B.

"Well the plane is totally out of control," he announced in the Trump Tower lobby. "I think it's ridiculous, I think Boeing is doing a little bit of a number. We want Boeing to make a lot of money, but not that much money."

While it has begun development work on the new jets, the U.S. planemaker still hasn't secured formal deals to build the two heavily modified 747-8s.

The U.S. Navy plans to divest its older model Boeing (NYSE:BA) F/A-18 Hornets in the coming years and hopes to buy dozens of F/A-18E/F Super Hornets to deal with a shortfall of strike fighters aboard its carriers.

The plan, which is still being finalized, could be implemented as early as part of the fiscal 2018 budget, a Navy official told Reuters.

UAL may convert some of the Airbus A350-1000s to smaller long-haul models, and is considering the Max 10X, a stretch of Boeing’s largest 737, to replace some of the single-aisle jet orders it recently deferred as part of a cost-savings push.

Levy also says UAL is rethinking its share buybacks after announcing a $2B repurchase plan this summer that followed a $3B effort last year, explaining that the pace may need to slow because of increases in labor expenses from several new union contracts as well as rising fuel costs.

Boeing (NYSE:BA) looks on the bright side following the WTO's ruling against a Washington state tax break for its 777X jetliner, claiming the decision was "a victory for the United States, Washington state and Boeing" since the WTO rejected all but one of the European Union's challenges to the tax incentives.

"In total, the EU claimed that Boeing had received $8.7B in subsidies. This claim was rejected by the WTO, which found future incentives totaling no more than $50M/year to be impermissible," Boeing said in a statement.

Boeing says it expects the ruling will be overturned on any appeal, claiming to have the upper hand in the latest round of a long trade dispute placing it at odds with rival Airbus (OTCPK:EADSF, OTCPK:EADSY).

Airbus (OTCPK:EADSY-0.5%) is calling for a global agreement to set rules for the aerospace industry after the WTO partially ruled in Europe's favor in the latest round of a marathon subsidy dispute with Boeing (BA-0.7%).

"I continue to think that the only way out of the ridiculous series of disputes initiated by the U.S. is to agree on a set of globally applicable rules for the support of the civil aircraft industry, which would benefit both sides of the Atlantic," Airbus CEO Tom Enders said in a statement.

"The duopoly is no longer the framework of reference in the future," he said, noting recent support by the Quebec government for Canada's Bombardier ((OTCQX:BDRAF+0.1%), (OTC:BRDBF)).